Let A Woman in Your Life
by Eliza1984
Summary: I love reviews! This is my first attempt at fan-fiction! I love Higgins and Eliza and My Fair Lady! I have some fluff in there but I try to find a balance.
1. Chapter 1

Let a Woman in Your Life

It was noon on a summery Wednesday when Higgins stood in his chambers wondering how to make his boudoir, the bedroom of a bachelor, into a suitable establishment for a female. But the idea of exchanging his decor, specifically the luxurious red silk bedding for something pale and flowery made him ill.

"Mrs. Pearce?"

"Yes, Mr. Higgins?" his housekeeper stuck her head in his bedroom door.

"What do you think perhaps is the most gender neutral colour?"

"Green, sir."

"Green?" the inflection indicated his disgust

"Or perhaps a deep yellow."

"Oh that's simply ghastly Mrs. Pierce." He waved her out of the room.

Higgins groaned to himself. Although the idea of marriage no longer frightened him as it had, the concept of converting his stately home into a place suitable for an ornate female was daunting and frightening. Granted, Eliza's femininity was unquestionably not nearly as unbearable as others, his years as a confirmed old bachelor has made him unusually sensitive to lace and flowers and perfumes. He despised them. He had a fear of seeming too weak around her, but in truth he was neither weak nor foolish, because in the presence of Eliza, he was in the presence of his equal. And in truth he found her eyes quite pleasing.

His internal monologue was interrupted by the chatter of servants and the opening of the downstairs door. Eliza and the Colonel had returned from a morning stroll to Covent Garden. The servants were very fond of Eliza, although there was a certain amount of jealously from a few of the female maids who wondered how it was possible that a common flower girl could enter under their noses and win the heart of the professor. There was also the continual question of whether or not they had ever had a chance to woo the professor and become lady of the house. But Eliza's demeanor was so down to earth and pleasing, they found themselves entranced with her also.

The Colonel assisted Eliza in removing her duster. Pickering had proven to be quite useful in the match between the two. Rumors had circulated around town that Eliza was a cousin of Pickering, some had even heard that she might be Hungarian royalty and the eyebrows that had been raised due to the presence of an unmarried female in the house with two bachelors relaxed, And surely, given Mrs. Pearce's sterling reputation, the girl had been well looked after, they reasoned.

Eliza, dressed in white, held in her hand a bouquet of white roses, surely purchased from the flower gardens at Covent, made her look every inch the bride to be. Her demeanor, unlike most soon to be married females, was quiet and serene and calm. The ceremony itself, had yet to be decided upon, much to the annoyance of the Professor's mother. Perhaps a civil ceremony or a garden wedding. Henry detested the idea of large ceremonies with a myriad of family members he wasn't aware of having, and flowers, and painfully embarrassing declarations. It was embarrassing enough that despite his objections to marriage, he had fallen under the spell of a woman. He often thought of being colder to Eliza in front of Pickering and his mother to prove his independence, but it was no use. They knew better.

Hell, _HE _knew better.

He exchanged a few pleasantries with Eliza, ironically about the weather and her health, but as the parties stood around chatting, Higgins was very aware of the watchful eyes of the servants and Pickering. Amongst themselves he knew they discussed the marriage of the two. Did he love her? 'Surely, not. The Professor loves only his work.' Was it a marriage of convenience? 'Perhaps. But they are quite a pair.' Had he even kissed her yet? 'How can you marry one without kissing them first?' It was too much for him to have to be guarded in his own home. And there were moments where he would have preferred to steal Eliza away and run off from the watchful eyes of the house, where it could be just the two of them. It was a scandalous thought, he knew, and her behavior had been nothing short of ladylike. She behaved like royalty. But there were flashes of something in her eyes at times that awakened feelings in Higgins, feelings that he had ignored for years. He had experienced those feelings in his youth, but he found those idle thoughts were drowned out by the shrill jabbers of the females his mother had hoped he would court.

But in that regard, Eliza was different. Unlike any of the other silly girls he had known. Yes she had her moments where he wanted to strangle her, and vice versa. He laughed thinking to himself that he had not been struck by an arrow in the heart, but rather a pair of slippers aimed directly at his head.

After the small talk dwindled to nothing, Higgins excused himself to his study. As uncomfortable as he felt in moments in his own home, the one place that had he still had solace was his study. The books, the gramophones, the paintings; those were his. Eliza and Pickering climbed the stairs and Pickering began guffawing at something Eliza said.

Higgins closed the door quietly and looked around. Alone. Amusing that in this very room he had once sworn to Pickering never to let a woman intrude on his personal space. How simple it had all seemed.

He climbed the circular staircase and momentarily lamented the loss of Bachelor-hood, but the idea of losing Eliza brought more despair. He comforted himself with the idea that his study would remain intact, no matter what color the sheets and draperies in the bedroom were changed to. Of course this train of thought automatically led to the idea of sharing a bed with Eliza. He shook himself back to reality

"Good heavens," he muttered to himself quietly, "such thinking of women led to the downfall of Samson and the fall of Troy." He began to reach for a copy of the Romic Alphabet when he heard a footstep behind him.

He turned around and there she stood, pulling the door shut behind her and leaning her head against the door.

"Oh? You startled me my dear." Making sure his voice wouldn't betray his worries that she had overheard his muttering earlier.

Eliza didn't respond. In her right hand she still held the bouquet of flowers.

'Did you and the Colonel have a nice excursion this morning?"

"Quite," she replied, " though I fear it's rather gloomy out."

"Well, what did you expect, this is London after all." Higgins continued searching through stacks of papers and books. The trivial small talk was beginning to irritate him. Finally after another awkward period, he spoke again. "Did you need something?"

Eliza bit her lip and shook her head in the negative.

"Well I must get back to work then. I shall take you somewhere this evening, a play perhaps. I should introduce you to Ibsen, he was really quite a good writer"

Eliza nodded, but continued to linger.

Henry finally realized that he would have to resort to his temper to get her to talk about why she lingered in his study, the one safe place he had left. In exasperation, but controlling his temper as much as he could as to not start a fight, he promptly turned to her and in as harsh a tone as he could muster he stated, "Eliza, I gave you the gift of rhetoric so that you could communicate great ideas, emotions, and thoughts. What good is all that time spent if you continue to stand there idly like a fine statue. What is it that you want to say to me?"

Eliza stepped forward and embraced him and pressed her lips to his and for a moment Higgins completely forgot what had irritated him in the first place. This was different from the first kiss they shared the night he had asked her to be his wife. That was small, polite, and momentary. This was full of longing and all the emotions that had been neatly tucked away. Neither wanted to pull away, but Higgins finally decided it best to stop it. Momentarily he cupped her face in his fingertips and traced her jaw line with his thumb, he suddenly realized he had lingered there longer than what was appropriate. He cleared his throat and released his hold on her and began to search for some invisible item on the floor. "You didn't actually answer the question, Eliza? What is it you wanted to tell me?"

"Only what words cannot express, Henry." She smiled as fixed a loose hair pin into her tightly wound hair.

Higgins knew exactly what she meant. There were many words to describe that feeling; admiration, amiability, infatuation...Love. No matter how he tried to restrain the word it kept finding it's way back into his throat. 'Surely she must know how I feel' he thought. He found himself unable to form the letter L by pressing the tip of his tongue to his teeth, and he was surprised to be unable to perform even the simplest of consonants and he a professor of phonetics

."Eliza, I..."

"Yes?" she replied unable to mask the hope swelling up in her heart.

Unable to continue his original train of thought, he chose an alternative.

"I believe today would be a lovely day to visit my mother." He straightened his jacket and began to walk towards the spiral staircase.

Clearly disappointed, Eliza spoke after him. "Henry! If you speak about your mother every time I kiss you in that manner, I fear we might be in for a bit of trouble! Besides it's surely going to rain."

"I thought I told you to steer clear of reading Freud, you insect! Oh no matter. We'll take a taxi to mother's. Now go along and freshen up and I will call up my mother and tell her to invite her friend the Bishop over. After all I shan't be able to marry you without him, and then the whole trip would be wasted."

Eliza beamed and threw herself into his arms. He found himself less resistant to the show of affection and he allowed himself to shower her pretty face with kisses. She would be his and for the tiniest moment he allowed himself to be swallowed with happiness and let out a boisterous laugh. She pulled herself away and began to run out of the study.

Higgins stopped her in her tracks by shouting her name "Eliza?"

"Yes?"

Which colour do you prefer? Green or yellow."

She looked rather pensive for a moment and then responded with a smile.

"Neither."

She exited the room with the panache of a queen.

'Thank heavens," he thought, 'I shan't have to replace the linens.'

As he started to stroll away from the door he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. On the shelf nearest him, amongst the volumes of Shakespeare and Byron, lay Eliza's bouquet of flowers. It was an elegant, feminine touch against the leather bound novels. How foolish he had been to think that Eliza's presence would not change everything, even his precious study. It was only now that he realized he was completely thankful for that fact. Nothing, not the words of Shakespeare or the study of languages, would ever be the same again.


	2. Chapter 2

(I was never really sure how to continue, so I did my best, making the wedding day and night as true to the story as I could. I had a lot of apprehension in writing a wedding night scene, because I feel these sort of things might jeopardize the sacredness of these characters. I got advice from a couple of people on how to proceed. I hope you like what follows, and if not, don't rake me over the coals too harshly. I have another chapter after this one that I am working on currently. It will hopefully be up soon)

It was nothing lavish, a small affair quietly contained to the garden at his mother's house. Eliza wore her simple white gown holding a new bouquet of roses. The only guests were the Colonel, Mrs. Higgins, and the Bishop. Unfortunately the bishop had taken an immense dislike to Professor Higgins after he had started correcting his grammar during church services. But he held hope that if God could not change Higgins, perhaps a woman would soften him.

Eliza had urged the professor to invite Mrs. Pearce and he begrudgingly complied.

"Oh, Mrs. Pearce. You really don't want to come to this old thing do you?" the professor asked her

"I'd imagine not sir..." she responded, picking up on his intonation.

You must imagine that it was difficult for the professor to profess his feelings for Eliza in front of God and the bishop, let alone the hired help.

He bothered only to change his shirt and tie, wearing his grey tweed suit. There were few chances to discuss details. They hurried out the door so quickly, that none of them noticed Freddy Eynsford-Hill staring sadly at them from down the street. He had made it a point to walk down Wimpole Street at least once a day. He watched the professor assist Eliza into the car with his hand at the small of her back. Feeling defeated, he turned around and headed home

While Eliza freshened up, Mrs. Higgins, the Colonel, and Higgins sat around in the garden discusses the upcoming nuptials.

"What do you plan on saying during the ceremony, Henry" asked Mrs. Higgins impatiently as Henry paced back and forth.

"Oh what the devil, why should I have to say anything? I should just like to sign a legal piece of parchment paper, go home, and read some Milton before I ...get some much needed rest." Higgins continued to pace.

"Surely there must be something you want to say to Miss Doolittle. Or a poem? Keats? Or a Shakespearean sonnet, perhaps? Oh yes..." Pickering rambled.

Higgins stopped. "I daresay sonnet 130 might be appropriate..."

Pickering pondered for a second "Refresh my memory."

Higgins sighed and began pacing in iambic pentameter.

"My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; _  
_Coral is far more red than her lips' red; _  
_If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; _  
_If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. _  
_I have seen roses damask'd, red and white, _  
_But no such roses see I in her cheeks; _  
_And in some perfumes is there more delight _  
_Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks. _  
_I love to hear her speak, yet well I know _  
_That music hath a far more pleasing sound;..."

Mrs. Higgins threw her hands up in the air "Stop. Stop this instant. Oh Henry really, if you cannot do any better than that, I shall disown you and adopt her."

One of the servants bustled into the room "Beg your pardon Mrs. Higgins, but the bishop grows impatient."

Mrs. Higgins sighed "Well I must stall for time until Henry can find some element of romance in his soul. Pickering, would you accompany me to the library?"

"Oh, yes of course..." Pickering followed closely behind.

Higgins sighed. Romantic love was not his specialty. He had read all the love sonnets, but found only the language to be beautiful, not the idea. Why should he have to recite these things?

He sat down and leaned his head against the back paneling. His mind was still racing when he suddenly felt himself drifting off. Eliza crept in, saw him sleeping and very quietly lifted his hat off his eyes.

Higgins opened his eyes, his face close to hers. He groaned sleepily "Oh for heaven's sake, what do you want?"

"Henry, do you really want to marry me? Because this is a very cruel prank if you don't."

"Oh tosh Eliza, if I hadn't wanted to, I wouldn't have asked..."

She sat at his feet and neatly folded her hands in her lap. Without realizing it, Higgins promptly sat his feet in her lap. Eliza looked shocked. His displays of affection were few and far between and when they did occur, she usually initiated them.

"Oh damn," he said sitting up "I probably got dirt on your gown, didn't I?"

With a quick brush of his hand, he swept the imaginary dirt from his shoes off her dress. Eliza blushed. Henry sighed.

"I can't say I know much about courtship, Eliza. I never even gave you a proper proposal."

"Oh I don't require such frivolity Henry. I accept you for who you are...and who you are not."

The two shared a smile and Higgins finally began to feel comfortable.

Mrs. Higgins darted into the room interrupting the moment. "I'm really afraid we must hurry." The bishop was in step behind her and he looked quite frustrated.

Henry stood up and offered his arm to Eliza. She took it gratefully and they walked towards the bishop.

It was a small ceremony, without fuss, and without any declarations. There were no rings to exchange, as it was so spontaneous. When asked if they had their own vows to pledge to one another, Eliza promised Higgins that she would try to not end sentences with prepositions and would watch her verb tenses and Higgins promised to refrain calling her a squashed cabbage leaf or correct her grammar (as often).

And so the bishop, bewildered by the unusual promises of mutual respect, announced Eliza and Higgins, as wife and husband respectively. The ceremony culminated with a small kiss on Eliza's cheek. Mrs. Higgins (now the elder Mrs. Higgins) clasped her hands together and beamed and the Colonel nodded encouragingly.

"Now enough of that," exclaimed Higgins, "Let's supper, I'm famished."

The bishop wondered if Higgins had any element of romance at all in his heart, but as he looked at Eliza, beaming, he felt his heart soften.

The company enjoyed a large meal and Henry decided not to engage the bishop in any theological debate. His mind was busy elsewhere, still processing the fact the flower girl from Covent Garden was his wife.

"Now what?" He wondered to himself

The Colonel yawned loudly "Well good heavens it's almost 11 o'clock. Mrs. Higgins, I'm terribly fatigued after this day, would you mind very much if I imposed and stayed here this evening?"

"Of course not Hugh, You may stay in the guest quarters."

Pickering was no doubt trying to allow Higgins time alone with his bride, but somehow, Henry would have felt more comfortable with Pickering around.

The two walked Eliza and Henry to the door and said their good-nights. The car was waiting to take them home.

The ride back to 27A Wimpole Street was painfully awkward, with neither of them saying a word to the other. Eliza leaned her forehead against Higgins's chin. They arrived home at midnight and the household was dark and quiet. Neither of the two were addressing the elephant in the room.

"I shall have to buy you a ring tomorrow, and one for myself as well." Higgins finally broke the silence.

"Yes, if you must." Eliza quietly responded.

Higgins was thinking too much, wondering what to expect and what she expected of him. The marriage would be consummated and the idea both terrified him and delighted him. She had just recently turned 22 and he in his late forties. She was most definitely inexperienced in the ways of love, her prudery at the beginning of their experiment proved this. He had made love to women in his youth, but it had been years and years since those days.

Eliza, climbing the stairs behind him also had the same fears and had questioned the physicality of the relationship. Women and men sometimes married only for convenience, not for love, and she still had the fear that he married her only to avoid being questioned by her presence. Still, there were moments that she longed to break the barriers between pupil and teacher and have him make love to her. But these were just daydreams.

Lost in her train of thought, Eliza began to open the door to her bedroom.

Higgins stopped "Eliza, where are you going?"

Eliza paused, staring at the doorknob and then back up at him, her mouth slightly open. "I don't know where...I thought that I..." She closed the door with a start "Oh Bloody Hell!" she cursed.

Higgins smiled. He always liked it when she cursed.

Eliza shook her head. "All my things are still down here."

"We'll have Mrs. Pearce bring them up in the morning and then we'll figure out to do with all of it."

Eliza let go of the door handle and timidly followed him up the stairs. She suddenly realized that she had never actually been in his room before. It was quite stately and she felt out of the place. Everything felt out of place, for that matter. Once a threshold is crossed, there would be no returning to normalcy.

Higgins excused himself and prepared for bed. Eliza lay on his bed. It was soft and she felt herself grow drowsy. As he undressed and reached for his robe he replayed their dialogue from a past argument in his head. "_I came to care for you, not to want you to make love to me and not forgetting the differences between us, but more friendly like."_

"Damned 'more-friendly like', there's nothing 'friendly' about it." He thought to himself. He sighed and finally entered the room, only to be surprised that Eliza was sleeping peacefully on his bed, white dress sprawled around her. She looked peaceful and somewhat angelic. His heart ached and he realized the power she had over him.

He lay down beside her, unsure of what to do, so he picked her up in his arms. She opened her eyes and blushed when she realized she had fallen asleep.

"Oh, I'm sorry Henry. I must have ..." she said shyly.

"The strain of the day has made you tired. I'm compelled to tell you something, Eliza. I'm not quite sure how to say it."

"Yes?"

"I do believe I love you."

Eliza smiled drowsily "I believe you do Henry."

He looked baffled "Surely that's not the proper way to respond."

"No of course not, but you must know I love you as well, else I wouldn't have returned to you."

Higgins sighed. The declaration had not been as painful as he had anticipated. He kissed her softly.

They made love in an exploratory manner, learning each other, memorizing the other. Eliza was not ashamed to have him dote on her in such a manner. She held on to him tightly and once the two finally collapsed, they spoke not a word to each other. Eliza secretly felt triumphant and Higgins finally succumbed to his fate as a man who loves his wife (secretly he enjoyed the idea of being able to do that with Eliza whenever he pleased).

As dawn arose, the servants noticed Higgins was noticeably absent from breakfast, as was Eliza. The women of the household sniggered and giggled amongst themselves, for they all knew what events had passed in the night.

* * *

After the night had faded and the servants stirred throughout the house, Higgins lie awake, not wanting to awake Eliza who slept peacefully beside him. He had been awake most of the night, pacing about in his robe wishing he could smoke a cigar or drink a glass of port. He looked at her with hair sprawled over the pillow, mouth slightly open, and arms draped over her stomach. He dreaded the thought of having to face the household staff. His pride would be terribly wounded if they looked at him differently.

She began to stir, stretching her cream colored arms above her head. Her eyes fluttered and suddenly she realized where she was and her current state of being, disrobed and in the final throes of romance. In a moment of panic she pulled the covers up to her chin, prompting a chuckle from Higgins.

"Too late for that my dear."

She blushed. "Well now what?"

Higgins sat down at her feet "I suppose breakfast might be the next sensible move. Though it's nearly noon."

Secretly he was as fearful as she, but he refused to show it.

Eliza reveled in the reality of what had just taken place in the past 24 hours. She could not stop herself from blushing like a schoolgirl. She did, however, find his nonchalance to be irritating.

It then dawned on her that she had no garments, other than those she had worn the day before.

"Henry?"

"Yes?"

"I have no robe, or anything else..."

Higgins stopped for a moment. "I do believe I have an extra one lying around." He vanished into his wardrobe and came back with an ornate robe of red silk. He held it open for her.

Eliza paused, knowing she would have to walk across the room to him. She sat up but wrapped herself in the large blanket and began to walk towards him.

Higgins sighed "Tosh Eliza. Don't be such a prude."

She sighed, dropping the blanket in front of her and stood before him. He draped the robe over her shoulders and tied it in the front. Higgins absorbed how beautiful she was, with her pale skin and dark brown eyes, like a renaissance painting. Eliza began to wind her hair on top of her head finding hair pins all over the floor. She felt disheveled.

"I must go get dressed." She stated awkwardly

Eliza crept down the stairs, in order not to be seen by the household staff. She made it to her former room and ducked safely inside, only to be surprised the Mrs. Pearce was already there, straightening Eliza's bureau.

Both women were surprised by the other, not knowing how to respond.

Mrs. Pearce recovered first. "Good morning Mrs. Higgins. Did you sleep well?"

Eliza paused, not used to her new name and unsure of how to respond, for in truth she had not slept well at all.

"Yes, very well and please, you may still call me Eliza. I haven't changed just because..."

Mrs. Pearce smiled, grateful at Eliza's humility. "I suppose you'll want me to run you a bath and help you dress..."

Eliza nodded "Yes please."

Meanwhile Higgins dressed quickly and bolted out the door. He hoped to return from the jewelers before Eliza was finished.

* * *

At the (elder) Mrs. Higgins's house, the lady and Colonel Pickering shared breakfast, they discussed many things but finally settled on talking about the newlyweds.

"When do you think he decided he loved her?" she asked

"Oh who can say really?"

"Well I hope he realizes how lucky he is. Eliza could have had her pick of suitors, I'm sure."

"Indeed, but it seems to have all worked out for the best. I just hope he doesn't bully her too much. Oh dear, it is getting quite late in the afternoon my dear. I hate to inform the newlyweds, but I must be returning home to India quite soon to continue my work. It has been nearly a year now since I left.

Mrs. Higgins touched the Colonel's hand "You won't stay away long Hugh, I pray?"

The Colonel himself blushed. "No, of course not my dear Mrs. Higgins. There's no need to rush off quite yet." And he kissed her hand.

Mrs. Higgins smiled "Of course not"

* * *

Higgins felt entirely out of his element in the jewelry store. He cursed himself for not bringing Eliza with him.

"Might I help you sir?"

"Yes, I need a set of wedding bands, one for myself and one for the lady?"

"What size is the lady sir?"

Higgins groaned. They had her ring in Brighton fitted, but he failed to note the measurements. He spotted a lady of Eliza's stature nearby and he pointed.

"About her size. I'd wager?"

The clerk paused and pulled out a set of regular gold bands "These are our most standard set"

"Oh no. I need something more unusual for the girl."

Higgins combed through the rings, picking out a silver one for himself. The clerk insisted upon matching them, but he thought better of it. Surely he could find something that would suit her.

"AHH! Yes! There it is..." He pointed to a band of silver with blue amethyst and white diamonds encircling it. It was not ornate, but unusually beautiful.

The clerk nodded and grasped the band and placed it in small box.

After he had been paid, the Clerk looked at Higgins "That's an awfully unusual ring, most women want the standard sir."

"She's an unusual girl..." Higgins held the box up in the air and darted out in the street.

* * *

Once Eliza had discovered Higgins's absence, she began to panic, wondering if he had changed his mind about the whole thing. She decided to investigate the library, because chances were if all his books were still there, he would return home. She was relieved to discover the study as it had been. She sighed, grabbed a copy of Keats and rested upon the couch.

She heard the door swing open.

"ELIZA!"

Higgins shouted as he burst into the room. Startled she stood up, but she released the breath she had been holding and was glad to see he had returned.

"Where on earth did you go?" she asked, setting down the book she had been holding.

Higgins said nothing but indifferently tossed the box towards her, and began sifting through the papers on his desk. Eliza opened it, staring at the ring inside. And despite her strong exterior, she suddenly began to choke up and began to sob.

"What on earth? What's the matter?"

"It's too much, I can't..." she tried to cover her mouth to keep the sobs from coming out

"Oh blast, Eliza, don't cry for heavens sake. I shall never buy you anything again silly girl." She expected him to berate her more but instead he took a handkerchief and dabbed her cheeks with it. He slid the band above her small ring from Brighton. Then he nonchalantly pulled his own ring out of his pocket.

"What's that?" she said, still sniffling.

"Oh this. I picked out one for myself as well." He nonchalantly slipped the ring on his finger.

She grabbed his hand and looked at the plain band "That is the most unromantic thing I've ever heard."

"Perhaps, but I suppose it had to be done. I daresay I should've taken you with me, but I wanted to be..."

"...Spontaneous" she finished his sentence

"Just so. Now you get back to whatever you were doing. I've got work to do."

Higgins walked off into another corner of the study and Eliza picked up her copy of Keats she had been reading. She sighed and pretended to be fascinated, but her eyes continually gazed to Henry. She enjoyed looking at him, hard at work. She couldn't keep the smile off her face. He suddenly felt her eyes upon and he stopped what he was doing. He sighed and walked over to her. Henry offered her his hand. Eliza put down the book and grasped his hand intertwining her fingers with his. He led her out the door and up the stairs. Eliza wasn't sure where they were going, but suddenly he grinned like a young boy and pulled her, laughing, through the door to his chamber.


	3. Chapter 3

(I'm splitting the last part into a few more chapters. Lest it should be a 100 pages long. It's got a bit of fluff, but not much considering it's Henry. )

They had been married for a little over six months when Higgins had to abruptly leave for one of his educational outings. It was some Phonetics convention in Dublin, Ireland; a place that Henry himself stated 'was most in need of it.' Eliza, found the idea amusing and thought it sounded like a bunch of old gents, sitting around congratulating each other on their use of proper grammar. He was to be gone for three weeks, perhaps longer if need be.

Of course, this was the first time the two would have been apart for in a long time, and to be honest neither could remember what life was like without the other. Eliza had become indispensable to Higgins. She worked as a typist on manuscripts, helped him make records or invited other professors to tea. She often play hostess or pacified his students (whom he often treated as badly as he had her) or served a research assistant. Life, besides marriage, was not so different.

To occupy their free time, which they had plenty of since the days of the experiment had passed and Hugh Pickering had moved back to India to continue his work on dialects, Higgins had taken the task of teaching her Latin. It was a language of the educated, and Eliza had refused to learn French. It was like old times. He drilled her repeatedly on verb tenses and talked to her sharply when he grew frustrated with her. An observer would have thought the berating a sign of trouble. But Eliza knew how to fight back, and in doing so reminded Higgins why he had married her in the first place. Many a lesson resulted in him passionately kissing her to stop the argument.

The morning of his departure, Higgins was running about getting ready to leave while Eliza lay in bed with a headache. He had hoped she would have accompanied him to the dock at least, but she looked so genuinely miserable that he decided not to pursue it further.

"So you won't come at all?" He asked as he grabbed his hat from the bureau

"I'm sorry Henry." She mumbled from under her hot water bottle

"Oh. I guess you better stay here then, rest up and I will see you when I return."

She sat up looking heartbroken "What am I to do without you here? I shall have nothing to occupy my time."

"Well. You can always work on your conjugations. I shall expect perfection when I return. And if you miss me too badly, you have my voice on the gramophone. You can turn it on if you wish."

She smiled, remembering the argument they had that day, glad at how it had all turned out. Higgins smiled flippantly and pressed his lips to her cheek. The butler knocked politely on the door. "Sir your car is here."

"Very good." Higgins turned his wife, "Well my dear, I'll be back in three weeks."

Eliza forced a smile "Please don't pick up any Irish women and attempt to make them into ladies."

Higgins grunted and turned out the door. As he hurried downstairs he felt a tinge of regret for not having given her a more heartfelt goodbye. He sat in the motorcar and leaned his head back. He used to relish in these opportunities to drink brandy, smoke cigars and wax intellectual with his colleagues. Now, even though he wouldn't admit it, he just desired to stay at home doing nothing with his wife.

He sighed. He gazed up at his house as the motorcar drove him further away than where he wanted to be.

Meanwhile, Eliza lie upstairs in bed, unable to sleep off her headache. Tears were streaming down her face. It was silly, she knew, because three weeks was not a long amount of time.

* * *

Three days later, Eliza still felt ill and she was having trouble sleeping. Mrs. Pearce offered her some of the professor's brandy, but the thought of it made her stomach turn. She hated alcohol and always had abhorrence to it thanks to her father.

Early in the afternoon, the other Mrs. Higgins called. Eliza was doing some of Higgins's correspondence (He usually let her do this because her penmanship was far better than his.) Mrs. Pearce brought her into the study "Mrs. Higgins to see you Eliza."

Eliza stood up as her mother-in-law entered the room.

"Have you heard from my no-good son?"

"Not a word, I am left solely in charge of the household."

Mrs. Higgins looked Eliza up and down. "That may be the smartest thing he's ever done."

Mrs. Pearce brought some lunch into the study. Eliza waved hers away "No thank you Mrs. Pearce, I'm not hungry." Eliza took only some tea.

Mrs. Higgins looked at Eliza with squinted eyes. " You look flushed my dear, is everything alright?"

Before Eliza could answer Mrs. Pearce jumped in "Oh! Eliza's not been feeling well for days now."

"Oh dear, Eliza, you should see a doctor." Mrs. Higgins interjected.

"Oh I tried to tell her Mrs. Higgins, but she wouldn't listen. She's quite headstrong." Mrs. Pearce continued

"Seems my son is rubbing off on her..."

Eliza sighed, most of her life she had never known a mother's love. Now she felt as though she had two.

"Really I am quite well. Mrs. Higgins, the Colonel wrote to me and said to give you his best."

Mrs. Higgins blushed. "Oh? How very lovely." And she sipped her tea.

Eliza picked up on her radiance. 'Surely not,' she thought to herself. But the idea tickled her fancy. Pickering and Mrs. Higgins in a mutual infatuation. Yes, Mrs. Higgins was a few years older than the colonel (not by many), but surely at a certain age these things didn't matter.

Mrs. Higgins changed the subject "But really my dear, your face is blood red. I am very close to an excellent physician. Will you allow me to bring him to you?"

"Really Mrs. Higgins, I am quite well."

"I insist Eliza. It would ease my mind greatly. I must worry about you for you make my Henry so very happy."

Eliza found it impossible to refuse her. "Well if you insist, then by all means. Just bring him here around 11:30 or so..."

The ladies chatted for another hour of so before Mrs. Higgins had to leave for a social engagement of some sort. She was on so many committees, it was hard to say which she was heading for. She kissed Eliza on the cheek and began to head out the door when she turned around.

"Give the Colonel my regards when you write him." 

"I will" Eliza nodded knowingly.

* * *

Henry Higgins was staying at one of the best hotels in Dublin. He had given a few lectures and had been able to see some of his closest friends. But his mind continually drifted back home. He felt as though he was not as sharp as he used to be. Why could he not enjoy things as he used to? He knew he knew the answer; It was because he liked and respected Eliza more than his peers.

Many of the men there wanted to know about his new wife. The old Higgins would have boasted about how he created a masterpiece, a perfect woman. Instead he chose to remain quiet.

"How old is she?" one would ask

"22. Nearly 23."

And the men would chuckle as if they had some sort of insight into why a man of 47 would marry a young female. Higgins found the diatribe quite idiotic, although he knew he would have assumed the same about any other man in a similar arrangement.

"Well," Higgins would say pulling the subject off his love life, "She does love Keats and her grammar is superb."

And the men would laugh raucously. Higgins half-heartedly listened to the discussion until it was time for bed. Then he would listlessly lie down and imagine Eliza's warm body next to his until he fell asleep.

* * *

Eliza woke up ill again the next-day, only this time she was unable to even get out of bed. Mrs. Pearce brought her a damp cloth and placed it on her forehead. At exactly 11:30, she returned and announced the arrival of Mrs. Higgins and her physician.

"Oh, but I'm not even dressed." She started to raise herself up out of bed, but decided to allow herself to fall back over. She was ridiculously tired.

Mrs. Pearce sighed loudly and walked outside. "I'm afraid she's worse today than yesterday. And she's terribly prudish about being in her nightgown."

Mrs. Higgins sighed and waved the doctor into the room anyway. The blinds were drawn and one could barely make out the outline of the woman in her bed. The physician turned on the lamp nearby.

"Mrs. Higgins?" asked the physician

Both women replied, "Yes?"

The elder quickly realized her mistake and waved her hand at the physician.

"Can you tell me your symptoms?"

She started to talk, but Mrs. Pearce once again interjected. "Oh Eliza has had violent headaches, fatigue, nausea, trouble sleeping.."

The physician, amused by the busy bodies in the room looked at Eliza again "Anything else she forgot?"

"No, that's all." Eliza responded quietly buy politely.

The physician methodically checked her pulse, looked at her complexion and down her throat. Suddenly he smiled as though a stroke of genius had come to him while staring at her tonsils.

"Tell me ma'am, how long has your husband been away?"

"Nearly a week."

"Newlywed."

"6 months."

The physician sat up and Mrs. Pearce stepped forward.

"Oh it isn't anemia is it?" Mrs. Pearce looked so genuinely worried that the doctor burst out laughing. He corrected himself quickly.

"Beg your pardon," he said clearing his throat, "it's just that she most certainly isn't anemic."

Mrs. Higgins's expression softened, but Mrs. Pearce did not quite catch on. "Then what on earth is wrong with the girl?"

"Nothing wrong. Perfectly normal for a healthy young married woman." The physician smiled.

Eliza suddenly realized what he was talking about, as did Mrs. Pearce. Eliza set up slowly, eyes widening in a state of shock. She felt the blood rush to her cheeks.

Mrs. Higgins covered her mouth, "Oh I simply should have figured that out on my own. Only I never assumed Henry was human enough to procreate."

Eliza, still in a state of shock could barely listen to the physician as he dictated to Mrs. Pearce "The girl is of a weak disposition, as this is her first child. She will need lots of rest, lots of fresh air. Make sure she is well fed and well looked after. She appears to be about six weeks along, maybe more, maybe less. I'll let you gather the details about her cycles and such things that are best left between females. These sicknesses will pass soon enough"

After a few more questions, the physician departed, leaving two ecstatic matriarchs and a semi-shocked Eliza.

"I shall send a telegram to Henry immediately." Mrs. Higgins declared.

"Oh no, please don't do that!" Eliza sat up with a start.

"Eliza, my dear. It is only fitting he should come and dote on you."

"Please, believe me. Henry Higgins's first love is phonetics. I do not want to be the cause of him having to drop everything to come take care of his (Eliza quickly counted) 4th love?"

"4th?" asked Mrs. Pearce

"Yes. I'm also behind Keats and Milton." Eliza responded matter-of-factly

Mrs. Higgins sighed affectionately. "I'm not quite certain what Henry ever did to quite deserve you. Very well. But please allow me to call on you and I will leave you in Mrs. Pearce's capable hands."

* * *

Henry had not spoken to Eliza in over a week and a half. He tried to brave it, convincing himself that it was so much better for him if he didn't speak with her. He was finally beginning to enjoy himself a little. He stayed out a little later in the smoking lounge talking of visible speech patterns and laughing raucously with his comrades.

But in those rare times he was alone, he had to battle himself to keep from calling or writing. He flight slightly guilty about leaving with only a small kiss on her cheek. But surely she must realize he was busy.

'Busy doing what?' he'd asked himself

'Trying to figure myself out' he concluded.


	4. Chapter 4

After much persistence from Mrs. Pearce, Eliza recounted the weeks and narrowed her conception down to an almost certain date. She was horrified to be discussing this with Mrs. Pearce, but admittedly would rather do so with her than Mrs. Higgins. If Eliza recalled correctly, it had been over 7 weeks ago during a quarrel over a John Donne sonnet. It had to do with whether the punctuation in a certain line was a semi-colon or a comma. Eliza maintained that it was a comma, while Henry boasted it had been a semi-colon.

"How dare you provoke me, I'll prove it to you immediately!" And he stormed up the stairs and yanked a leather bound book from the shelf.

He read for a second and then frowned.

"Damn there is a misprint in this book, the semi-colon's dot has been smudged." And he began to search for another volume containing the same sonnet.

He read it carefully, only to discern that indeed it was a comma. He dropped the book in the floor, moping.

He said nothing, but Eliza walked past, head held high in triumph.

"A comma, professor."

"If you're going to boast, at least do so in complete sentences." His arms were crossed, his pride hurt, but he was smiling.

Eliza bowed "I apologize professor. I do believe John Donne utilizes a comma." Eliza picked the book off the floor and pretended to be reading.

"That book is upside down you insect." And the professor yanked it from her hands.

Eliza smiled at him. They both enjoyed this game, and whether he would admit it or not, he enjoyed her becoming a learned lady. He took her wrists in his hand and kissed them and she glowed brightly as he pressed his lips against hers.

She, of course, spared Mrs. Pearce the details. They deduced she was nearly 8 weeks gone and left it at that.

* * *

Mrs. Higgins dropped by frequently to tempt Eliza with fresh fruit from the market and had also began teaching Eliza how to knit, because she felt the girl needed something more amusing than being a literary workhorse. They would make small chat for hours, Eliza would tell Mrs. Higgins how to take care of her geraniums, because the girl had a natural knack for horticulture ever since her days at Covent Garden.

Today, Eliza struggled with knitting needles. "I'm afraid I'm quite bad at this."

"Patience, my dear, it will come with time."

"I suppose Henry will have many scarves before this is through." Eliza unraveled the thread.

Mrs. Higgins chuckled and flipped through the magazine she was reading.

Eliza had wanted to ask her something but hadn't found a polite way of bringing into the conversation. She paused. " I don't mean to be impertinent but, would you tell me about Henry's father?"

Mrs. Higgins looked stunned "Of course dear, what did you want to know?"

"Everything. Henry never speaks of him."

Mrs. Higgins laughed, "His name was John. They were both cut from the same cloth: very proud, very arrogant, and too intelligent for their own good. But there was a streak of kindness in him. It came out every once in a while. Henry has the same. His father was also a professor of phonetics and from the moment Henry could speak he was listening to a phonograph. He molded Henry into who he is today. He was quite tough on him, but he loved him very much. He passed when Henry wasn't much older than you. Some sort of infectious fever." Her eyes started to flicker with sadness.

Eliza felt guilty so she quickly changed the subject. "Sometimes I fear Henry and I will have nothing to talk about other than languages and phonetics. I often struggle to keep up."

"That comes with time. I know he's dedicated to educating you, but I'm sure you teach him as much as he's taught you."

Eliza smiled, but was not pacified. Mrs. Higgins realized this and continued. "Of course when he was younger, he wanted to be a singer. I had the misfortune of having to be the one to tell him that he was quite tone deaf. Oh! And he stopped coming to mass once at age 12 because he could not stand to listen to the bishop's Irish accent."

"That sounds like him. Oh! I hope you don't mind I extended an invite to Colonel Pickering in a few months to come visit. This was before I knew about...Anyway, I don't suppose he could stay with you. Would you mind terribly?" Eliza smiled slyly and Mrs. Higgins nodded.

"Of course dear, anything to make you comfortable."

Suddenly there was a large ruckus outside the door. Mrs. Pearce darted into the room.

"The professor has returned, my dear."

"What? He's four days early?" Mrs. Higgins stood up

At that moment Henry entered the study, Eliza started to feel faint and began to worry about her appearance. Mrs. Higgins picked up on her worry and placed her hand on her shoulder.

"You look lovely my dear." She whispered.

"Mother, how nice to see you." he kissed her on the cheek.

"Yes of course." Mrs. Higgins responded

"Eliza." It was all Higgins said, while giving her a peck on the cheek, "Mrs. Pearce can you bring dinner in the study? It's been a long trip."

"Yes of course sir." She said eyeing him and eyeing Eliza. She exited quickly.

"Whatever are you doing back this early?" Mrs. Higgins asked, sitting down next to Eliza.

"Oh, I quite finished all my obligations and returned early because I frankly I was bored out of my head."

"Bored?" his mother's tone was disbelieving. "Bored with phonetics?"

"Oh not at all, bored with Dublin. Anytime I heard one of the maids speak, I nearly cried."

"Indeed." Mrs. Higgins sipped her tea to avoid laughing at her son.

"What on earth has gotten into you two? You're sharp as a razor and this one hasn't said a word since I've returned. Eliza you didn't even touch the chocolates I left for you." Higgins unwrapped one and ate it.

Eliza cringed at the thought of the chocolates and continued to sip her tea.

"Did you practice any of your Latin while I was away."

"Not a word." She admitted

"Confound it woman! How are you supposed to learn anything if you don't practice."

Higgins awaited Eliza to join in, but instead she stood up and looked at Mrs. Higgins. "I am really quite tired Mrs. Higgins, you'll excuse me. I want to lie down." Without another word she went upstairs.

"What the devil is wrong with her? She didn't even fight back."

"Oh really, Henry! Must you always bully her?"

"Oh tosh, Mother..."

His mother held her hand up. "Your father was the same way and having lived through it, I must protest. I know you inherited the inability to speak your feelings, though you've a great gift for talking about everything else under the sun. But do not think that I, for one minute, don't know the reason you're home early."

And Mrs. Higgins turned around and exited the study.

Henry groaned. His mother always had the last word. His father had taught him when to be quiet, and so he did. But perhaps she did know more than he was ready to admit.

Mrs. Pearce brought in the professor's dinner. He ate it alone. When Mrs. Pearce returned to clean his plates, he stopped her

"Has Eliza been feeling well? She didn't seem much like herself."

Nonchalantly, Mrs. Pearce continued to clank the china. "She's been quite well considering her present condition, sir?"

"What condition?"

Mrs. Pearce stopped. "I assumed they had told you sir."

"Told me what?"

Mrs. Pearce pressed her lips together tightly and turned and walked out the door.

"Confounded women and their cryptics." He called out after her. Everyone was behaving so strangely. Frustrated, he ran up the stairs and into their room, where Eliza lie, still fumbling with knitting needles and the large mass of thread.

"Since when do you knit?"

"Since yesterday." And she realized she had missed yet another stitch and angrily chucked them across the room. "Oh bloody hell."

Higgins chuckled. He was always amused when she lost her temper. He laid down next to her on the bed, still laughing.

"Don't you laugh at me. I'm not in the mood."

"Really Eliza, you're far more attractive when you're fuming about something."

"Well I do not feel attractive."

"Oh don't fish for compliments. You know you are a handsome woman."

Her eyes stopped flashing with rage and grew softer. She leaned back into the cushions and exhaled.

"Mrs. Pearce tells me you haven't been feeling well. Why's this?"

"What did she tell you?"

"That's just it she told me nothing and darted before I could press her further."

Eliza had been hoping to come up with some clever way of telling him, but she saw no way around it.

"I'm..."

"Yes?"

"_We _are going to have a child." The words were painful for her. But she was glad to have simply said it. She could not bear to look at Higgins.

Paused somewhere between horror and some other frivolous emotion the professor stood up and paced around.

"How the bloody hell did that happen?"

Eliza felt the anger rise in her throat, but she choked it back down and regained her composure.

"I believe it came from an argument over a comma and a semi-colon."

He stopped and began to remember. He had thought about that specific evening a few times. It had been wonderful. He shook himself back and exhaled. "I'm sorry. That sounded more harsh than I intended."

Eliza fell back upon the bed and laid her head down on the pillow. Higgins, who felt so many things at once, was still so very good at repressing them, just as his mother had said.

He walked over and sat next to her.

"I'm sorry you were bored in Dublin." She said

He paused "Well to be honest, it wasn't boring at all. I just prefer your company."

He laid back. Eliza looked at him out of the corner of her eyes and he was nonchalantly staring at the ceiling, avoiding eye contact with her.

She said nothing else, but smiled, resting her hand upon his. Henry reveled in the fact that he was now home with his wife and she shared those sentiments. They were both tired.

"I love you." She whispered as she drifted off.

He paused briefly and repeated those words to her, but she was already sleeping soundly. He kicked off his shoes and fell into the deepest sleep he had had in over two weeks.


	5. Chapter 5

The Colonel stepped off the train. It had been months since he had returned to London. He hadn't missed it. The weather was fearfully rainy and the soot from factories still lingered in the air. It had taken nearly two weeks for him to make it from India and he had been on a numerous amount of ships and trains. He pushed his way through the crowds in the dark train station when he spotted the elder Mrs. Higgins holding up a very light colored umbrella, a bright contrast to her murky surroundings.

He tipped his hat to her. "Always a pleasure to see you my dear."

Mrs. Higgins smiled "Delighted Hugh, I trust you had a pleasant trip?"

"Quite," he lied "but I do fear that I am very tired. I have been looking forward to seeing you ... and Eliza and Henry of course." He gave her a little wink. "I trust they are quite well?"

"They are indeed. They fight very often. Eliza escapes to my home until Henry realizes she is gone, panics and comes and fetches her."

"Sounds the same..."

"Oh yes." Mrs. Higgins replied tenderly.

* * *

When Mrs. Pearce showed the Colonel and Mrs. Higgins in, they heard a great racket from the study; the sounds of a record playing the International Phonetic Alphabet and Henry speaking boisterously over top of it.

"They've been in there since dawn doing heaven knows what." Mrs. Pearce shook her head

The scene was an amusing one. Papers were strewn about, the phonographs played loudly and Higgins stood at the bottom of the stairs looking upward towards his bookshelves.

"Which volume do you have?"

"Volume 6?" called a familiar voice

"Well throw it down then?"

A book flew over the top of the railing landing on the ground near Henry's feet. On closer inspection the colonel noticed Eliza, clearly near the end of her term atop a wooden ladder, balancing by keeping one foot on the shelf and the other on the steps.

The scene sent Mrs. Higgins into a frenzy "Henry! You must get Eliza down from there at once!"

Henry startled "Oh blast that, she's fine...Pickering!"

Henry darted across the room, hand extended.

Pickering grasped his friend's hand and shook it vigorously. "I really must agree with your mother. Miss Doolittle really must come down at once."

The phonograph switched off and Eliza joined them. "No one has called me Miss Doolittle in some time, I really quite miss it." Even in her current condition she was lovely, in fact more so. She wore a gown of pink organza, hair neatly piled on top her head, and her skin glowed radiantly.

"Oh quite right! I beg your pardon Mrs. Higgins." The colonel kissed her hand.

Higgins shook his head "I don't see what all the bloody fuss is about. You act as though I should treat her as an invalid."

"I hope you don't intend to use that language when your child is born." Henry's mother shook her head.

"Well we shall see. Colonel, can I offer you something?" Higgins grasped his colleague around the shoulder and pulled him towards the sofa. Eliza followed suit with Mrs. Higgins.

The four talked for hours, reminiscing about days past when suddenly the Colonel stood up.

"Well I believe we must be off. I need some rest. I fear I don't do train rides very well." 

"What the devil? Where are you going? Aren't you staying here?" Higgins jumped up

"Oh no, Henry. The colonel is staying with me." Mrs. Higgins announced

Henry snapped "What on earth for?"

Eliza stepped in "I fear that the Colonel is doing that for my sake. Surely it is disconcerting he should have to stay in the house with a full-term woman."

Mrs. Higgins laughed. "Don't worry my dear Henry. I shall bring him back tomorrow and you can play then."

Eliza smiled and clasped her fingers together. She enjoyed seeing Mrs. Higgins so happy.

Henry was, per usual, too self-focused to notice the simplest of interactions between men and woman. He was well learned in phonetics, but not much else.

"Good night, my dear Eliza." Mrs. Higgins kissed her daughter in law on the cheek

"So good to see you both." Eliza smiled as they walked out the door.

Henry sat on the couch arms folded, obviously pouting. Eliza petted him on the arm.

"There, there professor. He will return tomorrow. Until then you may enjoy my company."

"Well, I always have your company. I never see Pickering anymore."

Eliza raised her eyebrow "Oh, I see. So in short a person only gains desirability if they are absent from you. Perhaps I should go to India for a while. You'd miss me terribly."

"In _your_ condition?"

Eliza sighed. She had no retort. Higgins had won this round and he basked in his victory. He kissed his wife softly on the lips. 

He conceded "I would miss you terribly if you went to India, but I think we are safe to say that may never happen."

She smiled, knowing the subtext of the previous sentence was that he loved her and she stood up.

"Will you grab my slippers, Eliza?"

"I fear that you will have to pick them up yourself." She placed a hand on her stomach and turned and waltzed out the door.

"Oh yes. I suppose I will."

* * *

At the urging of everyone around her, Eliza remained in bed. She admittedly began to enjoy all the petting and she spent most of her time reading over Henry's manuscripts, looking for errors that needed to be brought to his attention. Over the course of the next few days Higgins and Pickering locked themselves in the study, like old school chums. They listened to old records mostly and as a joke put on Eliza's recordings. It was hard to fathom that she was one in the same as the fair lady upstairs in bed.

Higgins had avoided Eliza. His inexperience with women made him feel very uncomfortable around the girl, especially in her current state. The subject had been widely ignored between the two of them. In a way, he thought things might remain the same.

His mother had tried to remind Henry that he was soon to be a father, but somehow the subject was usually ignored. And Eliza, a saint of patience in Mrs. Higgins's eyes, never complained. So, it had been easy to skirt the issue.

But today immersed in phonetics with his best friend, his mind continually wandered to his wife, bed ridden upstairs. She had taken to sleeping in her old room in order not to inconvenience him. Higgins missed her, but said nothing.

Mrs. Higgins had come and spent the day by her bedside, reading to Liza, petting on her, and doing all the things she truly felt Henry should have been doing. Eliza was not feeling quite well but she hid it with a forced smile. Mrs. Pearce also stopped in several times during the day to try to tempt her with different foods: juice, chocolate, and bread. But Eliza refused most everything.

Mrs. Higgins finally stopped her reading of The Wife of Bath and looked at her daughter in law lovingly. "I fear I cannot do Chaucer as much justice as Henry. My middle English is absolutely atrocious."

"Oh you mustn't think that, you do lovely. Although to be completely honest with you Mrs. Higgins, I don't quite understand Chaucer yet."

"Would you prefer something else my dear?"

Eliza sighed, "I am so tired. I think some Shakespeare might be calming."

"Shakespeare? Calming?" My dear, Henry has filled your head with the most absurd ideas. Very well. Anything in particular?" Mrs. Higgins stood up

"Let Henry decide." Eliza closed her eyes.

Pickering and Higgins were laughing over brandy and cigars, when Mrs. Higgins stormed through the door.

"How's the invalid?" asked Pickering jovially.

"As though you two over-grown babies would understand" she scoffed.

They both picked up on the sharp tone in her voice. Higgins raised his eyebrow at Pickering as a warning for not to proceed any further.

"Did she want something from down here?" Higgins asked cautiously.

"I am on a quest for Shakespeare." Mrs. Higgins stated.

"Ah!" Higgins jumped up excitedly, "Now...what hasn't she read? Oh yes, The Winter's Tale. Not really his best, but he does make use of interesting plot devices."

He grabbed the book and outstretched his arm in an attempt to hand the book to his mother. She put her hand up in protest.

"Really. I am quite done for the day, and Colonel Pickering promised to take me to dinner this evening."

"I did?" asked the Colonel in surprise.

Mrs. Higgins gave him a look that bounced off him and hit Higgins.

"Oh yes, of course. I must have forgotten."

Higgins drew the book back to his body, realizing his mother was pulling his strings. He watched as Mrs. Higgins and the Colonel scuttled out of the study.

The professor sighed and tossed the play back upon the self. He sat himself down upon the nearby ladder, the one on which Eliza had so delicately balanced herself previously in the week. He moped for a few moments when Mrs. Pearce interrupted his solace.

"Ah yes, there you are. Eliza sent me to fetch your mother sir."

"Well you'll not find her here. She and the Colonel have gone to find sustenance." Higgins stood up.

Mrs. Pearce sighed "I guess I will have to sit with Eliza until she returns."

"You had better, I suppose." 

Mrs. Pearce looked at the professor, momentarily surprised that he had not taken it upon himself to go sit with his wife.

"Yes sir." She said softly, shutting the door behind her.

Henry stood up and paced around the study. He felt so many things: frustrations that his life had changed, a moment of blaming her (which he quickly regretted), and a great deal of love. He paced back and forth for nearly an hour before deciding that he wanted to see her himself. The house was dimly lit as he climbed the stairs, but he made it to Eliza's room.

He found her asleep, blanket neatly concealing her condition, wet cloth upon her forehead. Mrs. Pearce was reading to her from a volume of Keats (because Mrs. Pearce did not have the patience for Chaucer). Higgins cleared his throat softly and Mrs. Pearce looked up. She was startled but she softly smiled. She got up from her chair and silently passed him the book of Keats. And she left, closing the door slowly behind her.

He sat down in the chair placed by her bedside and silently began flipping through the volume of poetry, when he heard Eliza's soft voice whisper. "Why did you stop, Mrs. Pearce?"

Henry realized that she had awoken; unaware that he was now with her. He dumbly grabbed the other book on the nightstand. 

"I can't believe you let my mother read you Chaucer." 

The corners of Eliza's mouth formed a smile. "Henry?"

"Well what other man would be in your chambers this late?"

Eliza smiled, changing the subject. "Actually your mother did quite well. I'm afraid to confess that I don't really understand Chaucerian English quite yet."

"Well we will remedy that when you are quite on your feet again."

"Yes of course. Keats is fine for now, although..." she removed the rag from her eyes to make sure Mrs. Pearce was not still loitering, " Mrs. Pearce is not very poetic. She has no expression in her voice when she reads."

Higgins chuckled "No. Of course she doesn't." And he began reading to her softly...

Asleep! O sleep a little while, white pearl!  
And let me kneel, and let me pray to thee,  
And let me call Heaven's blessing on thine eyes,  
And let me breathe into the happy air,  
That doth enfold and touch thee all about,  
Vows of my slavery, my giving up,  
My sudden adoration, my great love!

And sleep, Eliza did.

* * *

The next morning, Mrs. Higgins returned carrying a bouquet of violets from Covent Garden. She climbed up to Eliza's room and was surprised when she opened the door to see Henry fast asleep in the chair beside the bed.

Eliza was awake, however, sitting straight up and playing with her hair.

"Good morning my dear," Mrs. Higgins whispered softly, handing Eliza the flowers, "has he been here all night?"

Eliza nodded "Quite. I hadn't the heart to wake him." She smiled

"I say. Let's humiliate him!" Mrs. Higgins waltzed across the room and threw open the blinds, flooding the chambers with sunlight.

"Henry!" Mrs. Higgins shouted causing the professor to jerk out of his sleep.

"What on earth? Oh good mother, you're back! How was dinner?"

"It was lovely but it was several hours ago."

Henry looked around, realizing he had fallen asleep. He pointed an accusatory finger at Eliza. "I told you to wake me!"

Eliza smiled "I would have, had you not looked so comfortable."

"Comfortable. Mad hat! I have a crick in my neck and no feeling in my limbs." 

Eliza's face betrayed the laugh she was stifling. Higgins became frustrated, realizing his mother had witnessed something of a tender moment. 

He sighed, defeated "You're going to hold this over my head for eternity, aren't you mother?"

"Henry, I fully intend to outlive you by at least one day so I can do just that."

He groaned, nearly tripping over his heavy feet as the blood came rushing back. He walked out the door, taking his pride with him.

He nearly bumped into Mrs. Pearce.

"Oh Good Morning sir. How did you sleep?"

He growled.


	6. Chapter 6

Eliza gave birth two days later. Henry did not check in on her because, in truth, he was afraid to see her in such a manner or in pain. In fact Eliza forbade him to come near her. She knew, despite his bravest face or calm demeanor, he would be unable to handle such a trauma.

In the past she had seen women give birth in shabby flats or alleys near Covent Garden. It was not pretty. These destitute women were in constant pain without the luxury of doctors or real midwives. They had only liquor to kill the pain, and these poor women would give birth to their children on cold concrete floors in London. Some lived, some didn't. She remembered the cold of Covent Garden and shivered.

In remembering those days, Eliza could not believe how far she had come. She felt warm and safe, no matter the pain she was in. Surrounded by Mrs. Pearce and Mrs. Higgins who loved her like a daughter, Mrs. Higgins had taken care to ensure Eliza had the best midwife she could find, one who used to work for the royals. (Eliza was afraid to ask why she no longer worked for them).

That day, Eliza paced around in her own room, trying to walk through the pain. Mrs. Higgins stayed by her side, making trivial small talk.

"I hope it is a girl. It would serve Henry right."

Eliza laughed "I would not want to receive his tempers if that were the case. He would be simply impossible to live with."

"In that case you and my granddaughter can move in with me and we will go on many holidays." Mrs. Higgins joked.

Mrs. Pearce entered the room. She had fetched some lavender per Eliza's request. Real French Lavender. Eliza had always known that the flower's scent had a calming effect, but she had only dreamed of being able to afford it.

"How's Henry holding up?" Mrs. Higgins asked with moderate concern.

"The professor has done two recordings of Welsh dialects, gone for a walk and has played two games of chess with the Colonel. He lost both times and subsequently used the most disgraceful language."

"So he's just fine, then." Mrs. Higgins shook her head.

Eliza was relieved. She cared for Henry so deeply that she desired to protect him from all the harsh realities of the world that she had been privy to see. She felt often that she was his protector. Whether or not he noticed this, she was never quite sure.

"Come, Eliza. Let's get you into a bath." Mrs. Pearce took Eliza by the arm

Downstairs, Henry was searching for things to occupy his time. Reading required a certain amount of attention that he was not capable of giving today.

The colonel poured Higgins a glass of port. "Aren't you even the slightest bit nervous?"

"No. Eliza will be fine." He furrowed his brow, grasping the glass of port tightly and running his thumb across the top of the glass of port.

The colonel sipped his drink and nodded "Right-o."

Neither had much to say. The clocked ticked in the background, providing an uneasy tempo. "Well, we have only to wait I suppose." Higgins sighed.

* * *

And wait they did. Pickering and Higgins dozed downstairs in the study whilst Mrs. Peace scuttled from room to room like a busy bird. At one point she discovered the sleeping gentleman. She cleared her throat loudly.

"If we cannot sleep neither can you!" and she scurried back out the door as quickly as she had came.

Eliza did beautifully. It was painful, of course. But after several hours, Eliza gave birth to a perfect son. A boy! This was the announcement Mrs. Pearce relayed as she ran into the study at 8:30 in the morning.

"I have never seen a more handsome child!" Mrs. Pearce was choking up with tears and the two men promptly poke fun at her.

Higgins, who maintained a calm demeanor, was secretly ecstatic. The two men downstairs joined into a celebratory dance around the study.

An hour later Eliza, exhausted but comfortable as she could be, allowed Henry to meet his son. Of course Higgins maintained a civil manner but his eyes glistened. He kissed her with a great appreciation he couldn't always show. The child was small and very quiet. He did not cry, which Higgins promptly boasted that he clearly took after him (and not his mother). Eliza chucked a pillow at his head.

The two of them sat upon her small bed, holding the child when Mrs. Higgins asked "What are you planning on calling him?"

They both looked stunned as if the thought had never crossed either of their minds.

She sighed. "You two..."

And thus the bickering began. Higgins rattled off the names of great authors. Eliza wanted to give him a simpler name, something common. When Eliza suggested the name Bill, Higgins gave her a lecture on how that was simply a derivation of William, which he would be fine with. Eliza refused to give the child a name that was 'bigger than he was.'

Mrs. Higgins took the child in her arms as the two argued. She rocked him and whispered to him softly. "I fear these are sounds you must grow accustomed to, my dear. You have two of the most stubborn parents in all of England."

After an hour of reaching no conclusions, the two finally found middle ground.

As the colonel was permitted in to greet the child, Eliza politely asked "Colonel Pickering, we wondered if you would all us the honor of naming our son after you?"

"Me? Well. I'm dashed...and honored Miss Dool...Mrs. Higgins, of course."

And thus, the small child was named Hugh Byron Higgins. (Higgins snuck his literary name into the middle and Eliza pretended not to notice.)

Mrs. Higgins continued to cradle the child in her arms. "I only hope he inherits your temperament, Eliza."

Eliza smiled "I think it's safe to say that I will try to wield as much influence as possible."

Higgins, who had left the room to show Colonel Pickering out the door for the evening, returned. He had brought his wife a cup of tea and sat down on her bed. Higgins felt compelled to stay very close to Eliza.

"Well mother what do you think of the lad?" Higgins's air was so pompous; his mother could not resist a shot.

"Well no insult to Eliza's chastity, but I fear he is quite too good looking to be your child."

Eliza smirked.

Mrs. Higgins continued, "Of course I shall like getting to know the child, but I shall only be able to make his acquaintance for a short time, as I will be traveling for a few months very soon."

"Traveling? Where on earth will you go?" Higgins turned to his mother.

"Oh! The Colonel has invited me to visit him in India. I daresay it will be quite an adventure. I've never been anywhere so exotic." Henry's mother handed Hugh to his mother.

Higgins jumped off the bed "Mad hat? What will you do in India? Are you to go unattended?"

Mrs. Higgins smiled at her daughter in law. "Oh surely Henry, you don't think I should need a chaperone at my age, do you?"

Higgins shrugged. "Why on bloody earth would you want to travel with Pickering?"

With this, the ladies shared a secret smirk.

Mrs. Higgins kissed Eliza on the cheek. "You did very well today. I shall leave you to rest." And for one moment, Mrs. Higgins casually touched her son's hand, saying nothing but allowing some tenderness to be conveyed. She left the room.

Higgins uneasily stood, hands in his trouser pockets. He walked over to the window and peered out at the dreary London afternoon. Rain was pelting against the window. Eliza held her child close to her, admiring the infant with adoration.

"My how everything has changed." Henry admitted quietly. Eliza heard this and smiled.

"For the better?" she asked

As always, Higgins couldn't find the right words to say. He walked towards his wife, holding their child and felt as though his chest might cave. Instead he sat down next to her, propped his feet up nonchalantly. Eliza had tears in her eyes. Henry noticed this and sighed with mock impatience.

"Oh you silly girl!" and he pulled her against him, kissing her forehead.

This was all the answer she needed.


	7. Epilogue

Epilogue

"_I have omitted the sequel in which Shaw explains that Eliza marries Freddy and not Higgins. Because – Heaven and Shaw forgive me- I do not think he was right". –Alan Jay Lerner from the script My Fair Lady_

Epilogue

Henry had warned Eliza that he would never be able to change his manners. That was mostly true. His demeanor remained the same after the birth of Hugh. Things returned to normal very quickly, except there was now a child who required much looking after. Hugh quickly became the apple of the household's eye. Everyone doted on him and Higgins often had to fuss at the maids, Mrs. Pearce and especially his mother.

"You'll spoil him if you pick him up so often. Then I'll be the one who has to correct his behavior the rest of his life."

Mrs. Higgins, most often the victim of these attacks, usually ignored Higgins and continued to dote on Hugh.

"Sometimes I fear I should have carried you about more often as an infant, Henry." She would retort.

Eliza took to motherhood very easily and found she rather liked having a son. She rested only a week after he was born and then she was back on her feet once more as Higgins's paper pusher. Henry was relieved to have her back, because without her secretarial skills and good nature he often felt as though he was losing his mind. And the two went back to work on whatever project Higgins stumbled upon.

During leisurely hours, the new family would take strolls through the park, and Higgins and Eliza would sit and be forced to converse. It was almost as if the two were required to learn each other all over again.

These conversations began to be the best part of their days and for the first time in their relationship, Higgins and Eliza were forced to talk about things other than phonetics and literature as these subjects quickly exhausted themselves. For these two that had so little in common, it was like re-discovering the other and they began to fall madly in love all over again.

Higgins asked Eliza about her past, because it occurred to him one particularly sunny afternoon that he did not know much about where she came from (other than it was Lisson Grove). He learned many things about her. For instance, her mother, who died when Eliza was only 8, had always called her Lizzie and used to tell her that she would someday be better than her surroundings. He also learned about some of the people she worked with at Covent, including a fellow named Willie, a costermonger who was more like a father to her than Alfred Doolittle ever had been, and always made sure she had a few extra coins or something to eat. And that she used to have a pet bird, simply called 'Bird', that had died some years before she came to Wimpole Street, but she kept the birdcage as a memorial to its former tenant.

Eliza also began to question Higgins about his childhood, although he only begrudgingly revealed them. As a child, he had been fascinated by model trains and he hoped that Hugh would also enjoy them because he really desired to purchase them. Higgins had caught a very bad fever as a young boy that damaged his vision in his right eye. And one particularly chilly evening, Higgins revealed to Eliza that he had been in love with a woman once before.

Eliza, stunned by this revelation pressed him for details. "What sort of woman wins your heart? I'd like to meet her."

Higgins was slightly irritated by her line of questioning, but knew that she would pester him until she knew to whom he had once been betrothed. He confessed that she had been a lovely girl named Margaret, a fair-haired beauty, nearly fifteen years his junior, from Hampton Court. Her mother had been a friend of his mother, and Henry admittedly was smitten. She was well educated and had a good ear for music and languages. They courted for years and there even had been talk of marriage, while he taught advanced courses at Cambridge. But Higgins's love of academia soon drowned out his feelings for her as she continually pestered him for the attention she craved. One day, she wrote to him to tell him that in his absence she had fallen in love with another, ironically one of his former students. A Hungarian named Zolton Karpathy. Eliza's mouth dropped open.

"So that's why you dislike the Hungarian."

"Oh that? Tosh. I dislike him because he has paraded my methods as his own for years. I recovered quite quickly. She always had a terrible habit of mispronouncing words with 'pn' at the beginning. Pneumonia became Pugh-monia."

But Eliza saw just a twinge of regret in his eyes and said nothing on the subject. She reached over and placed her hand in his. Higgins exhaled and traced the outline of her gloved thumb. As the weeks went by, the two realized they were more than just husband and wife; they were the most intimate of friends as well.

That is not to say they were inept at matrimony. Higgins was not a romantic, but he did have strong feelings of love for Eliza. They constantly changed. There were great highs and lows. They would bicker so loudly that Hugh would began crying upstairs and Mrs. Pearce would scurry up to his room to comfort him. Sometimes Higgins would lose his temper and Eliza would hurl some object in his direction (never DIRECTLY at him). But that was one thing he loved about her, no other person on earth made him as angry as she did at times. And he loved to make love to her. He never grew tired of stealing her away to be with her in that manner.

It was no surprise then, that shortly after Hugh's first birthday, Eliza discovered she was pregnant with their second child. She was now 24 and the year was 1916. It was also around this time that Mrs. Higgins wrote to announce that she and the Colonel were to be married. She had spent the last several months in India and her communications had been scarce.

Henry was furious, but surprisingly not at the Colonel. He was convinced that somehow his mother had bullied his friend into matrimony. Eliza managed to calm him.

"Not everyone thinks of marriage as punishment, Henry."

He grumbled a bit, but eventually wrote a letter of congratulations and informed them that Eliza was with child again. The war was making it very difficult for people to travel, but Mrs. Higgins and the Colonel braved it. In fact, they were married by a ship's captain on the return voyage to England.

As soon as the newlywed pair returned to Wimpole Street, Mrs. Higgins darted into the study, completely ignoring Henry, and showered her daughter-in-law and grandson with kisses. She returned with several gifts: spices for Mrs. Pearce, enough vibrantly colored silks for Eliza to make at least two gowns, and a carved wooden elephant for Hugh (which the infant found pleasing to teeth upon).

Henry looked stunned "Didn't you bring me anything, mother?"

"Of course dear. I brought your friend back to you."

Higgins found it somewhat difficult to accept that Pickering was now family, but he was excited to see him nonetheless. Mrs. Higgins continued to dote on Eliza.

"I simply cannot wait to meet my granddaughter."

"Your what?" Henry snapped.

"Oh! Of course it will be a girl, Henry. I feel it in my bones." Mrs. Higgins smiled radiantly.

And indeed, she was correct.

Eliza had finally gotten around to reading The Winter's Tale and she had fallen in love with the silly romantic play. She decided to name her daughter Hermione, after the statue that came to life in the end of Shakespeare's love story. She thought the name as beautiful as any she had ever heard.

And Henry Higgins, the man who once despised women, fell in love with another female. Of course, he never let on, but one could see the sparkle in his eyes. Eliza pretended not to notice, as not to hurt his pride. But she felt her heart might explode when she saw how genuinely happy Higgins was. No one else but she could see it.

Hermione would scream whenever her father picked her up. Higgins would look baffled.

"That's a wise woman." She would say

"Very funny."

And Eliza would smile wickedly at him, as he would hand their daughter back to her. Hermione would immediately stop her tantrum and contentedly fall asleep.

* * *

After the birth of her daughter, Eliza became bored and restless. She would take long walks back to Covent Garden and would listen to her old friends speak. She felt almost completely dissociated from them, but strangely at ease in their presence. They hardly noticed her, except for the occasional girl who would ask Eliza to buy a flower and she always did return home with a bouquet of dying Covent Garden flowers. Higgins would have assumed she'd taken a lover as she disappeared on her walks, had it not been for those flowers. He always knew precisely where she had been.

One day, Eliza was walking amongst the flower girls when she overheard two of her former friends chatting:

"What'ere 'appened ter Eliza? You remember 'er, I know you do?"

"Oh, I 'eard she moved in with a swell and 'e turned 'er into a right proper lady."

"I bet she's livin' the 'igh life now. I bet she's in ol' Paris, living like a queen."

"I bet she is."

And Eliza smiled, amused that she had become the stuff of local folklore. She thought once about revealing herself, but decided better. What would she have said to them? And so she bought herself some violets and returned home to Wimpole Street.

The war had made life somewhat more difficult, but they bore it as best they could. Higgins felt terribly sorry that Eliza had no passion to keep her occupied. So, with the help of the Colonel, they had a hothouse constructed for Eliza to begin cultivating plants. Eliza was thrilled, and the quasi-romantic gesture from her husband earned him several kisses. And thus Eliza began to cultivate her green thumb. She would steal away from the house for moments throughout the day. She studied every horticulture book she could get her hands upon. Although she enjoyed learning the science, Eliza had a natural instinct for growing flowers learned in Covent Garden.

And when her flowers piqued, she would trim them and donate them to the young flower girls at Covent under the guise of a Mrs. Elizabeth Higgins (she enjoyed how regal her name sounded). She knew that flower wholesalers marked up the costs of their flowers to the point where most of the girls could barely turn a profit for themselves. In order to make ends meet, many of the girls had to turn to other means (means that made Eliza uncomfortable to think about). In some way, it made her feel as though she could do something for the girls in the position she had once been.

* * *

Eliza had learned through her mother-in-law that Freddy Eynsford-Hill had fallen in love shortly after she had refused him, confirming her suspicions that the young man had been incredibly fickle. Freddy had married a French chanteuse with big red lips and long dark hair and because of this he had quickly lost his inheritance. Thus, Freddy had been forced to enlist in the army. The thought scared Eliza tremendously and she did worry about him. He had been the first boy who had ever loved her in that way. But she wondered what events would have occurred had she married him instead. She shivered at the thought, very content with her current station.

Higgins and Eliza's lives remained mostly the same for the next several years (Henry would have not had it any other way). The war ended and they went about their business, raising their children, researching dialects (Henry's newest fascination was with the Welsh), and continually bickering about minute details. The children were precocious creatures (who would have doubted that?). Hugh was very intelligent, a fast learner, devilishly handsome with a biting wit that occasionally got him sent to bed without supper (though he could usually count on his father to sneak him something later on in the evening, unbeknownst to Eliza). Hermione was the very image of her mother, somewhat milder in her temperament, and very musical.

One not particularly special evening, Eliza sat in the study playing a word game with Hugh and Hermione (aged 8 and 7). Higgins had passed on the merrymaking in order to work, but he occasionally glanced upon his family. He felt distracted by the constant snickering, but found it hard to mind. He would lean over the side of the balcony and shout at them to quiet down, which of course only provoked more giggling.

After the three had quite finished, Eliza sent her children to bed with the promises that she would see them off shortly after. Higgins observed how she knelt down to speak to each of them, brushing their forehead with her lips. After they left the room, she stood up and dusted off her skirt. 'Funny,' he thought 'how women's skirts are showing ankles nowadays.'

Eliza lifted her arms above her head and yawned sleepily. She gazed up at the balcony where Higgins stood, hard at work or so it seemed.

"Good Night, Henry. I'm off to bed, I believe."

She began to walk up the stairs towards him to kiss him goodnight. He felt himself compelled with the urge to tell her things; how meaningful it was to watch her with their children, how much he adored hearing her whistling in the hall in the morning, how he enjoyed watching her walk towards him like a Queen...how much he loved her.

She pressed her lips to his cheek and slowly began to walk away.

"Eliza?"

She stopped and turned to look at him. As though reading his mind, she walked back over to him placing her hand upon his shoulder.

"I know, Henry."

And Higgins, partly grateful he did not have to explain his feelings any further, grasped her hand and kissed it fervently. They smiled at one another without another word uttered. There was no need. They understood each other perfectly.


End file.
